A big win on Syrian chemical weapons

August 19, 2014 1:31 PM

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It’s been nearly a year since President Obama, poised to launch a military strike in Syria, saw an unexpected breakthrough: the Assad government agreed to give up its chemical weapons and join the international Convention on Chemical Weapons. As we talked about in June, the international framework included an agreement from Russia, arguably Syria’s most powerful ally, to help enforce the deal.

Away from the political chatter, however, efforts have been ongoing to ensure Syrian cooperation with its obligations under the diplomatic framework. As the New York Times reports, the process has gone exceptionally well.